Where would you live in London if you…

[Twittwhoo]

…had soon-to-be-secondary aged kids (and planned on state schools)

…liked feeling ‘in London’ (ie not suburbia)

…valued the usual stuff - access to green space, independent shops and businesses, villagey neighbourhood-y vibes, etc etc

…were open-minded to north and south

My son goes to Dunraven which is a great school.

We live in West Norwood in a lovely leafy street but close enough to the buzz of the high street (which has improved massively in the past 10 years), and short bus ride to Brixton for the tube. Lots of pubs, restaurants, indie shops etc. Monthly food market etc

Lots of fab parks too..Norwood, Dulwich. Crystal Palace, Brockwell etc etc

Brilliant community too..I know most of the people in my street, we have an active WA group and I know I could knock on many doors in an emergency or if I needed something.

Ticks all the boxes for us.

I was the one who was snotty about Clapham Common not @yoyy I’m comparing it to my beat which is Richmond Park, Barnes common, Putney common, Putney Heath and Wimbledon Common, which all feel more countrified. But it’s just personal taste.

There's no tube in New Malden AFAIK. It's just the overland trains there.

Yes meant train, there isn't a tube. Lots of South is without the tube tbh.

And to those saying Dulwich doesn't have a tube so is suburban - welcome to south London where lots of our stations don't have the luxury of a tube. Peckham and Clapham Junction don't have tubes they aren't suburban or cut off from London we have the overground and trains instead.

That's a lot of the reason why I don't get South London and feel a lot if it is surburban vibe compared to North which is so much better connected and. feels part of the bigger city. And I speak as someone whose lived in North and moved South. It just doesn't have the same vibe, sorry.

I prefer SE London and no one needs to apologise for not liking it for whatever reason.

But where in North London meets op’s criteria?

I’ve lived in both and I don’t find the north better connected - Muswell Hill is the equivalent of Dulwich - no tube. There’s roughly the same amount of lacuna between lines/stations north and south. And it takes forever to get from Hampstead to West London.

I don’t think it is true, and I don’t think you can tell if you are experiencing parks by driving round the edge!

You said S London parks… is Brockwell park as you describe it? Dulwich, etc?

@PiggyInTheLidl I think you are confusing me with another poster...

I don’t think it is true, and I don’t think you can tell if you are experiencing parks by driving round the edge!

So you don't think some areas are greener than others?

Why would I be experiencing parks by driving around the edges?
I think you are confused but I'm not sure what I said that was confusing?

@MarshaBradyo as has already been said, the areas around Achland Burghley, Haverstock, William Ellis , Parliament Hill etc etc - Dartmouth Park / Kentish Town / Camden area

Muswell Hill is very far north as the crow flies and not representative of "north" London. There are swathes of south London whjch are really close to central but which are so poorly connected they feel suburban / outskirts.

Also, lots of places' journeys to West London take ages! Hampstead to West End, City? Easy!

It’s entirely subjective. On the one hand MH is not that far, on the other all north London is too far north including Hampstead - that’s my point. West Hampstead and Belsize Park are as far north as I would go.

I don’t want to go to the city, there’s nothing there unless you actually work there. And it takes me the same amount of time to get to Oxford Circus from where I live now as it did from Hampstead.

It really depends on your axis - I’m not keen on the west end as it’s so touristy, my preferred shopping areas are Knightsbridge, Ken High St, South Ken, Sloane Square.

Barnet?

Just to keep the Dulwich debate going even longer... East Dulwich station is in Zone 2 not 3.

I can’t recall if people were talking about needing a tube line but after having a ten minute overground commute to London Bridge I’d not swap back to the northern line (my old method) for anything.

Yes. Living in SE London I actively avoid the tube.

East Dulwich definitely doesn't feel central though.

Also, whilst the train from say, Blackheath might take 15 minutes to get to London Bridge, they are far less frequent than the tubes and require more planning. Plus the timetables are changing on SE Rail and trains are being reduced further due to the increase in WFH. Plus regular strikes at the moment.

Tufnell Park or somewhere down to West End, City or London Bridge is the same duration but with trains every 2 minutes.

We're in Alexandra Park (basically the bit between Bounds Green, Alexandra Palace, and Muswell Hill). Zone 3. I grew up near Finsbury Park and went to CSG, and used to think of here as super suburban, but now I love it. Ten min walk to Bounds Green tube on Piccadilly Line or Alexandra Park overground, which gets to Moorgate in 20 mins. Loads of parks. Muswell Hill Broadway a 20 min walk up the hill, but it also has its own little shopping row with daily necessities, opposite a decent local pub. Loads of home workers and freelancers, so you get to know loads of neighbours. Son starting APS in September, great state secondary. Houses about 1-1.6 million. We're in a flat. Would recommend 100%, but if you're considering somewhere like Camden you could we'll find it too suburban. But you could get a house here.

I tend to agree with this - sometimes it’s about WHERE in an area you live. I’m in zone 3 but live 3 minutes from the station and therefore high street, cool pubs, hipster coffee shops, sourdough pizza places, delis, boutiques etc - it’s a real hive of activity and feels very ‘London’.

I used to live in a different area on the zone 2/3 border and it felt much more suburban, least of all because I was a 15 minute walk from the station, but also because the high street didn’t have much going on - Caffe Nero was the only coffee shop (the horror...).

Is it in the catchment area by distance for a good school though?

Properties are cheaper if they aren't in the catchment area by distance for a decent school.